Wärtsilä to buy Greensmith Energy Management Systems

Financial details of the transaction have not been disclosed. The acquisition is expected to close in July this year, subject to approval from US regulatory authorities.

The combined company will deliver a portfolio of hybrid and energy storage solutions.

Wärtsilä stated that Greensmith will operate as a separate business, but under Wärtsilä Energy Solutions.

Greensmith was founded in 2008 and since then has designed and deployed energy storage systems for some of the largest power firms globally, installing approximately a third of total US capacity in 2016. These energy storage systems run on a multi-application software and integration platform called GEMS.

GEMS helps in optimising and stabilising batteries with its integrated battery management system. The software can quickly adapt to changing market conditions and regulatory changes with less human intervention.

The system is useful for utilities, engineering, procurement and contract (EPC) companies and independent power producers (IPPs), where individual energy storage systems or a fleet of systems can be integrated into intermittent generation assets such as solar and wind.

Greensmith CEO John Jung said: ”The combination of Greensmith’s position and capability in energy storage technology with Wärtsilä’s global leadership in integrated energy solutions, with over 63 GW of installed power plant capacity across 176 countries – will bring both market and technology synergies to both organizations."

Wärtsilä Energy Solutions president Javier Cavada said: “The addition of Greensmith’s capabilities and expertise will allow Wärtsilä to offer our installed base significant opportunities for hybrid and energy storage solutions along with full in-house capabilities that combine and optimize different forms of power generation, energy storage and demand-side management.”

Image: Wärtsilä energy storage building in hybrid power plant. Photo: courtesy of Wärtsilä.